Operation Smile will celebrate its 30th year with a special homecoming mission to the Philippines to give back to the country that gave birth to what is now a global children’s medical charity organization.

The group will provide free life medical treatments to at least 6,000 Filipino children and young adults in 24 days through 10 dental and cleft surgical missions sites in Koronadal City, Cavite, Cebu, Cagayan De Oro, General Santos, Silay City, Manila, Naga and Pampanga.They are now encouraging private, public institutions and volunteers to join its efforts to reach out to these impoverished Filipino children through a local mission.They are specifically in need of volunteer nurses, anesthesiologists, speech pathologists, biomed technicians, plastic surgeons, dentists, medical photographers, pediatricians and medical records specialists in the mentioned areas.

Qualified / Credentialed Volunteers will be given proper training and receive certification from American Heart Association (AHA) in Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS), Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) and Basic Life Support (BLS).

Non-medical volunteers are also needed to assist in patient mobilization, final screening, patient assistance, physical set-up, photo and video documentation and other non-medical tasks that may be required.

Their main beneficiaries are children with facial deformities. According to the group, these children suffer in seclusion. Many of them withdraw from school, and withdraw from the world. A 45-minute operation can change their lives forever and restore their dignity. That is how Operation Smiles is "changing lives, one smile at a time."The missions will happen from November 8 to December 2, 2012.